'King of Parramore' was one of Orlando's biggest property owners

Mohammed Lutfi

Mohammed Lutfi grew from a boy in Jerusalem, who at age 10 had to help support his family, into one of the biggest property owners in Orlando.

When he died last week at age 66, he owned 350 to 400 pieces of real estate, much of it in Parramore, almost all of it concentrated within one square mile, according to his brother and partner, Said Lutfi.

He called himself the "King of Parramore" for his stake in that neighborhood west of downtown.

Mohammed Lutfi started in 1978 by purchasing a food store, Sunlife Grocery at 211 N. Parramore Ave., a business that made him a well-known figure in the neighborhood.

He sold that in 1992, but by then, he had begun buying up other property in the neighborhood, his brother said. The long-term strategy made him a millionaire.

His holdings included single-family homes, commercial real estate, apartment buildings and a 325-room hotel, Vacation Lodge on South Orange Blossom Trail near the Citrus Bowl, where his operations were headquartered.

The sign out front of the hotel Tuesday offered a four-night stay for $99.99.

"He bought those houses house by house, those commercial businesses business by business," his brother said.

Mike Rhodes, Orlando's code-enforcement division manager, spoke at Lutfi's memorial service, praising him as a friend to the city.

"I know he had zero tolerance for any drug activity on the property," attorney Mark NeJame said. "He would really work to clean them up and provide habitable living for those on the lower end of the socio-economic status and would often give money out of his pocket to help others.

"He also was an astute business person.… He had the vision that many of these properties went up in value over time as downtown expanded its boundaries."

"He was a very good partner, a very good friend," said Shakeel Ahamed Khan, a former investment partner.

Through a spokesman, Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings called him "a good community advocate and supporter of the people of the Parramore area."

Mohammed Lutfi died Aug. 27 after a brief illness. Hundreds of people gathered for his funeral at Al-Rahman Mosque in east Orange County on Friday and later that day for a service at his home in College Park.

He was a leader in the Central Florida Arab-American community and helped found two mosques in Orlando, both in Parramore, said his brother.

He also bought 40 plots in an Orange County cemetery as a place to inter Muslims whose families could not afford burials.

Lutfi was born in Jerusalem, then part of Palestine, a few months before Israel was declared a state. His father was deported, according to Said Lutfi, leaving Mohammed Lutfi at age 10 to help support his mother, three brothers and a sister.

In addition to his brother Said, Lutfi is survived by his wife, Summer Lutfi; children Felestene, Jeveara, Syria and Nasar; and brother Jamal Lutfi.